


remember

by MerelyLies



Category: The Good Place (TV)
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-01-21
Updated: 2021-01-22
Packaged: 2021-03-13 03:48:39
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,531
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28896915
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MerelyLies/pseuds/MerelyLies
Summary: She wondered vaguely if he found this as boring as she did but quickly dismissed the notion. No matter how many times they had read from the same script, the determination in his eyes had never dimmed. If anything, it had only grown more potent.Eleanor has been trapped in an endless cycle of reboots, forced to remember each one.
Relationships: Michael (The Good Place)/Eleanor Shellstrop
Comments: 5
Kudos: 18





	remember

_(“Michael, no--!”_

_He snaps his fingers.)_

She opened her eyes.

She was reclined on the sofa, her body twisted awkwardly as if she had been thrown down on to it from a distance. Sighing, she repositioned herself slightly, shaking away the pins and needles in her feet.

She was tired. She was always tired, but her whole body seemed to ache this time, stiff and throbbing. She could feel bruises beginning to bloom along her spine, and she groaned as she tried to straighten.

_(“Get back here,” he says, and she can hear his heavy footsteps behind her. She looks around frantically, but she can’t see him in the dark, so she just keeps going, her heartbeat vibrating through her skull.)_

She traced her fingers over the familiar soft cushioning underneath her, relishing the moment of quiet. The first few times this had happened she had spent these few precious minutes drawing up plans of actions, or brainstorming places that she could go. She still hadn’t known at that point what this would become, and she felt faintly nostalgic for that period of naivety.

_(“Calling a train?” He asks, and she wheels around. He is standing with his hands in his pockets, looking faintly bored._

_“Just fancied a trip to the beach.” She jokes, but he does not smile.)_

She looked up at the wall and squinted against the harsh fluorescence. A reluctant smile curved its way across her face.

“Everything is colossal.” She read, and the thick green letters glared back at her impressively. She snorted at them and combed her hand through her hair. “Someone needs to take that damn dictionary away from him.”

_(“Everything is splendiferous?” She reads. He nods, trying to gesture her into his office, but she shakes her head. “This is the bad place, isn’t it?”)_

The door creaked open, and Michael stepped into the room. Dark bags hung under his bloodshot eyes, and she could see tension in his long, gangly limbs. He leaned back very slightly so that he was pressed against the wall and smiled.

“Eleanor?”

“Yep.”

“Come on in.”

They sat down on either side of the desk, and Michael stared at her for a second. Eleanor smiled back at him, letting her eyes run across his ruffled hair and skewed glasses.

“You, Eleanor Shellstrop, are dead.” He told her. She nodded and twirled her hair around her finger.

Her attention wavered as he reeled off his usual speech, and she responded automatically, not listening to even herself. She could have written down this exact greeting word for word. She was sure she could mimic it out with the exact same inflections and hand movements.

She slouched back in her chair and let her eyes trail over him. He was wearing his light blue suit, which was a good sign. He tended to wear black when he was feeling particularly cruel, like an insolent teenager at a family gathering. It had French cuffs but was missing his usual silver cufflinks, and it made her fake smile a little more real.

_(“What are you doing?” He asks frantically, and she rips the jewellery from his sleeves, tatters of fabric falling on to the ground. She twists them open and jabs the pointed end towards his eye._

_“You tell me, man.”)_

She refocused just in time for him to fall silent. He looked at her expectantly.

“Wow.” She stated dryly, and he nodded sagely. They sat in a comfortable silence for a few seconds and eyed each other.

She wondered vaguely if he found this as boring as she did, but quickly dismissed the notion. No matter how many times they had read from the same script, the determination in his eyes had never dimmed. If anything, it had only grown more potent.

“Well,” he said. “Come on, then.”

_(“Come on then!” He screams, spittle flying out of his mouth. She wrinkles her nose as she feels it on her face, wiping over her cheeks with the sleeve of her jumper. “Just say it.”_

_“This is the bad place.” She tells him, checking the varnish on her nails.)_

They left his office and walked out on to the bustling street. Eleanor tried to look interested in the brightly coloured buildings, but quickly gave up and scanned the people strolling around her. Vicky was staring at her with wide, desperate eyes. She skipped down the street, with six chickens following her in an orderly line.

“I like chickens!” Vicky yelled breathlessly to her. Eleanor just looked at her, face blank.

_(“This is your soulmate, Katie.”_

_“Why is my soulmate trying to cut off her ear with a pair of scissors?”_

_“Something about art?”)_

She followed Michael through the cobbled streets, trying to spot any differences. He had been lazy recently, keeping the majority of things basically the same. Still, though, he cycled between restaurants, and Eleanor smiled when she saw the egg cafes.

“Is it eggs-citing?” He asked, pointing at one. She rolled her eyes and supressed a grin.

“Eggs-ceptional.” She replied. He held on to her arm as he laughed fiercely, his face flushed. She patted it awkwardly and quickly moved away.

“I just discovered puns the other day,” he told her. “Humans are remarkable. You just get one word, and another word and then just smash them together!” He clapped his hands together to illustrate his point. “And that makes a joke!”

“How did you find out about puns?” She asked, and he looked at her, eyes crinkled in confusion. “Just, can’t imagine angels sitting together, swapping puns.”

“Ah,” he said, and his face relaxed. “No, not so much. My friend. She told me a brilliant one.”

“Oh yeah?”

_(“Hey Michael, how does the devil welcome you down to hell? He says watch out, a soul!”_

_“I’ve told you, there’s no such thing as the devil. And why would he say watch out?”_

_“No, you’re missing the point—” )_

She saw her house in the distance and gazed upon the Icelandic blue monstrosity with fondness. He had never bothered to change her house, despite changing the others’ every now and then. She was oddly grateful for it.

They stopped in front of it, and he looked at her expectantly.

“This is your house.” He told her, and she put on her normal expression of distain.

“Cool.” She said, and he beamed.

He showed her in and meandered around as he did his usual speech. He guided her to the clown paintings and then to the energy-saving flush on her toilet.

_(“It saves the planet,” he tells her seriously, and she frowns._

_“What planet? We’re not on a planet.”)_

After he had finished explaining to her the particularly complex needs of her houseplants, he paused, slipping his hands into his pockets.

“I suppose that’s everything.” He said, and she frowned.

“Everything?” She echoed. She glanced over to where he usually played her memories of feeding kids and defeating corporations in court.

“Oh! Of course.” He said, chuckling awkwardly.

He strolled over to her and placed his hands on her shoulders. He kissed each cheek once, and then leaned back to look at her.

“It’s lovely to have you here.”

“Uh, thank you.” She replied, stepping away. He grinned and let his arms flop back to his sides.

“See you later, alligator!”

“Yeah, bye.”

He smiled at her for a moment more and then turned around and left.

The door banged shut and she stared at it, hoping for answers. The door offered none.

“That’s new.” She muttered to herself.

The kiss was easily explained away. Weird physical contact from strangers. He had tried it out on a few of the first days. It was an old trick, but an effective one.

To not tell her she was an amazing lawyer though, that was an unknown. She tried to remember if he had made any indication that she was someone else but drew a blank. He usually loved making her watch the videos and took great pleasure in asking endless questions.

_(“I have to ask, Eleanor, how did you manage to operate that food bank for starving children with so little money? It must have been a mammoth challenge.”_

_“Uh, well, I just got them a couple of happy meals, you know, they’re pretty cheap.”)_

She strolled over to the clown faces and stared at them solemnly.

“What is he up to?”

A few hours later, she walked back down to the centre to see his presentation. She sat in the back row, smiling back at Glen, who was sitting next to her.

She looked around the crowd, and immediately spotted Jason. He was not in his usual monks’ robes, but a bright yellow Pikachu onesie. The hood was pulled over his head, and he beamed out of it with unbridled joy.

Looking past him, she could see Tahani near the front. Her hair cascaded down the back of her chair into Bambadjan’s lap. He peered round, before swiping gum out of his mouth and into her hair.

Her eyes met Chidi’s, and they shared a polite smile. He was sitting a little closer to her and was turned in his chair, gawking at the people around him.

She hadn’t spoken to him for a long while. Michael had long given up with the soulmate idea, fed up with everyone teaming up against him. Selfishly, she thought it was probably for the best. It was always difficult to keep secrets from him.

_(“Please, Eleanor, I’m trying to help you.” He pleads, and she turns her back to him._

_“You can’t help me. You always try, but you never can.”)_

She wondered how he would have dealt with this situation. What ethical scenarios would he have turned to? Which philosophers would he have gone to for an answer?

At this point, she had probably read more philosophy books than Chidi ever had on Earth. None of them had given her clarity. A lot of them had managed to give her more questions.

Michael stepped up to the podium, and a hush instantly fell over the crowd. He smiled sweetly down at them, looking like a kindly grandfather.

“Hello!” He said, bring his arms out wildly.

“Hello!” Everyone replied in perfect harmony.

“When did he turn these things into middle-school assemblies?” She mumbled, ignoring Glen’s fierce glare.

“Welcome to the Good Place!” He continued, and she sat forward in her seat eagerly. His opening speech was always different, and a good indicator of what was to come.

_(“Welcome to the good place! Watch out for the butterflies, they have quite a nasty bite.”)_

“This is a wonderful place. A place of happiness, a place of friendship,” he boomed, and then paused. He searched through the crowd, and then met her eyes and smiled widely. “A place of honesty.”

“Honesty?” She echoed, and Glen loudly shushed her. “Oh, shut up.”

He brought up the screen and gestured at their names and headshots. She saw her own image rush by and grimaced at the angle.

“Every single one of you has been specially selected to create a unique and balanced ecosystem.” Lines began to snake out of each image, linking them to one another, until the image looked like an incestuous family tree. “A place where every single person is your trusted confidant, your best friend.”

_(“Who’s your best friend?” She asks him. He looks surprised._

_“Probably you. Who’s yours?”_

_She feels her throat tighten oddly. “Probably you.”)_

She glanced over at Chidi and was taken aback by the quiet amazement on his face.

“You will never be lonely here. You will never have to hide the way you feel, because you cannot. People cannot trick you or deceive you. You will know everything about everyone. A perfect society.” He said, voice soft and gentle. “To allow for an eternity of happiness.”

A chatter spread over the crowd, and Eleanor bit nervously at her fingernails.

She hung around after he had finished, craning her neck to see him past the gaggle of people around him. Looking around she saw Chidi still in his seat, and against her better judgement she walked over and sat in the chair next to him.

“Hello,” she said. He continued looking forward. “Are you okay?”

He blinked and then shook his head violently as if trying to wake himself. He looked over at her and smiled kindly.

“Yes, sorry.” He said, and then quickly offered his hand. “I’m Chidi.”

“Eleanor.” She said, taking his hand and giving it a soft shake. She cast her mind out to think of something more to say, but his gentle voice interrupted her thoughts.

“I never really had many friends on Earth. I think the ones I did were sick of me towards the end.” He told her, and she looked at him sympathetically. “It’s…so nice, to think that might change here.”

“Well,” Eleanor said, giving him a wide smile. “Consider me your first heavenly friend.”

He beamed at her, and then frowned slightly, tilting his head slightly as he studied her face.

“I feel like I’ve met you before.”

_(He is screaming so loudly, and she grasps violently at his clothes, trying to wake him. He wakes with a start, his eyes clouded with a fierce fear. She strokes his cheek gently until his breathing slows down, and he sobs into her chest.)_

“Maybe in a different life.” She replied.

Chidi left after a few more minutes, citing tiredness and promising to catch up with her soon. She watched him go and was unsurprised when she heard Michael sitting down next to her.

“Eleanor. How are you finding your first day?” He asked her, his voice oddly low. She shrugged slightly and rubbed at her arms.

 _Good,_ she formed in her mind.

“Weird.” Her mouth said. She blinked slowly, and he smiled.

“Lie filter. Can’t be any lying in the Good Place, can there?”

She stared at him with large, frightened eyes.

“No, I suppose there can’t be.”

_They are in his office, and he is holding her hand._

_“Michael,” she says, tugging at him. He grins and holds on tighter. “What are you doing?”_

_“Humans do this.” He tells her, swinging their arms back and forth. “With their friends.”_

_“Weird humans.” She replies, but smiles, gripping hold of him a bit tighter._

_The next day he resets._

_They are in her house, slouching on the sofa and throwing popcorn at each other._

_“You’re going to ruin my sofa!” She cries playfully, punching his ribs gently._

_He laughs. “You hate this sofa.”_

_“I’ll hate it even more when it’s sticky.” She says, and he rolls his eyes and rests his head on her shoulder._

_The next day he resets._

_They are at the arcades, and his face is joyous as he gazes down at the minion she has won him._

_“Oh Eleanor, I love it!” He says, and she laughs._

_“Chill out dude,” she says, “you must have about fifty of those by now.”_

_He stiffens._

_“As an avid human lover.” She clarifies quickly. “You can’t get away from those things. They’re even in memes.”_

_“They are?” He says in awe._

_The next day he resets._

**Author's Note:**

> @chandlerx on tumblr. Next chapter in the next few days.


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